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Work:
I write computer software/firmware for a telecommunications company.
Athletic Accomplishments:
Q: When did you start swimming and how did you get into competitive
swimming?
A:
From as early as I can remember, my brother (9 years older) and one
sister had been swimming on a summer swimming team at the local pool.
So I joined as a 6 year old and kept swimming until I was 16.
I got back into competitive swimming when I started triathlons in 1987. Right now, I mostly swim for the fun of it and for triathlon training. I rarely do swim meets (you sit on the deck how long for a few races that only last a couple minutes?), but I have done the Bay Swim the past 4 years.
Q: How do you manage to juggle training with work and family life?
A:
Ever so often, a discussion about training volume comes up on
the triathlon computer newsgroup. I'm always amazed at how much
training most of these people do. While I enjoy athletics, I also
want my kids to recognize me when I walk in the door. So I try
to set up my workouts to require as little additional time as
possible. I swim only couple mornings a week. Commuting to/from
work is the only cycling I do during the week. On my longer Saturday
rides, I leave early enough that I'm almost always done by very early
afternoon. I run first thing in the morning or at lunch. With a
little advance planning, I get in my long runs by running to work
(and take the bus home in the afternoon). A schedule like this
allows me to stay active at church on Sundays and spend evenings
at home.
Q: Did anyone inspire you?
A:
Lots of people are always inspiring me, but one person inspired me
a lot when I first got active in triathlons.
My first triathlon only had about 40 people in it, so it was pretty easy to notice who else was there. One man had a full beard and a substantial amount of grey in his hair. To the eyes of this naive 23 year old, he definitely looked like he was well past his athletic prime. So I was naturally quite surprised when he finished WAY ahead of me.
Over the next few years, I saw Gordon and talked with him at a number of races. Not only did he help me realize how much athletic potential we can maintain as we get older, he had a great attitude towards races. Before I went to Hawaii for Ironman, I was talking with him about his experiences at the race. He made one comment that I really liked. He said, "Just about anyone can finish Ironman. All they have to do is want to finish strongly enough that they want to do the training." It put races into a new perspective.
Q: What is your favorite race and race strategy?
A:
I race mainly for the personal challenge. So I naturally gravitate
towards longer and hillier races, where the course itself provides
a challenge. So it shouldn't be any surprise that my favorite race
was World's Toughest Triathlon, a 2 mile swim, 100 mile bike, and
18.6 mile run in and around Lake Tahoe. The whole race was held
at altitudes from 5000-8300 feet. The lake was cold and the
bike and run were both extremely hilly. So just finishing it was
enough of a challenge. The strategy for a race like that is similar
to that recommended for a marathon: start at an easy pace, hold it
for most of the race, and only if you still feel good with a few miles
to go do you try to speed up.
Limiting things to pool races, I'm partial to IM and to relays. IM requires you to be proficient at each stroke (much like triathlons, which require proficiency in three different events). And both IM and relays have the potential to change drastically when there is a change in stroke/swimmer, keeping the excitement level high.
Q: Do you have any training advice for long-distance swimmers?
A:
For swimmers in general, I recommend working on technique. This
is especially true for triathletes who come to swimming from a
cycling or running background. It is much much easier to force
yourself through air with poor technique than it is to force yourself
through water. Besides reducing joint stress, improved technique
allows you to go faster for the same effort. I consider that to be
free speed!
For open water swimming, my biggest piece of advice is to be mentally prepared for the swim/race. Know what you are capable of and have a good idea what to expect during the swim. Remember that open water has its own unique challenges. Some of these, like the lack of a black line on the bottom, are obvious. Others, like the mass of swimmers at the start, are less obvious but still well known. And some, like figuring out how to stay on course when the sun's glare keeps you from sighting the next buoy, are much more subtle. Open water experience is a big benefit here, but just having some knowledge of what to expect should help reduce anxiety to a reasonable level. Also, be ready to adapt. I can't recall a single open water race I've done where something unexpected didn't occur. Finally, have confidence in your ability to keep yourself safe. About the worst thing you can do is to panic.
Q: How have you gotten faster?
A:
I've been forced to throw out the idea that more training will make
me faster. I'm not training nearly as much (swimming, cycling, or
running) as I used to before I got married and had kids. My
cycling and running times are slightly slower, but my swimming times
are actually noticeably faster now.
Getting back to the question, the short answer is, "I'm actively lazy." The longer explanation is that I try to make it into a game to use as little energy as possible when I swim. Over the years, I've tried many subtle (and some not so subtle) variations on my strokes to see how they affect my speed. And every once in a while, I get really lucky when someone gives me a stroke tip that works really well for me. When that happens, every thing is much more natural. Seeing such rapid improvement and feeling so good in the water really makes swimming fun.
Q: Do you have any diet recommendations?
A:
Yea! I feel redeemed!
After following a typical high-carb, very low fat diet, I started
something new about 6 years ago. The idea is to stop regarding fats
as necessarily bad. Instead, I try to get a good mixture of essential
fatty acids and avoid hydrogenated fats (like margarine). There have
been medical reports in the last few weeks that finally concur that
hydrogenated fats are worse for you than saturated fats. So I finally
feel redeemed.
Other than that, I generally keep my meat intake pretty low. I try to stay away from junk and most processed foods. And I eat much more ice cream than I probably should (Yum!).
Q: Do you believe in weight training?
A:
That's an interesting question for someone who has only been in a weight
room a half-dozen times or so in his life.
So it may come as a bit of a surprise that I actually believe weight training can be beneficial to most of us. While I've never done much weight training, I have done a fair share of resistance training to build up strength. In particular, I believe that it is important to maintain balance between counteracting muscles. Most of the exercise we do only stresses one muscle that controls a joint. For example, the thighs of sprint runners tends to be much more developed than their hamstrings. In addition to being a cause of pulled hamstrings, this can also lead to chronic knee joint problems.
Q: What are your future plans?
A:
Raise Daniel and Regina to be good, well balanced kids.
Athletically, I want to keep exercising to help me maintain my health. I also want to keep competing for the enjoyment of it.
Q: Any last comments?
A:
Drafting doesn't belong in real triathlons!